Post by DERRENMATTS on Aug 11, 2006 19:51:46 GMT -5
What will it take for Bassy to break into the top 12 among PG's? First lets look at who the top 12 are:
Steve Nash
Chris Paul
Chauncy Billups
Baron Davis
Gilbert Arenas
Tony Parker
Jason Kidd
Andre Miller
Mike Bibby
Kirk Hinrich
Brevin Knight
Luke Ridnour
Comparing Telfair to any of these guys may be out of the question at this point because they've proven to be good PG's for more than a couple of seasons. But this just may be a case of Telfair being undeveloped compared to where these guys are right now. Aside from Jason Kidd and Chris Paul, who came out strong from their rookie season (averaging better than 7 apg), most of these top PG's started off slowly like Telfair.
Does Telfair have the skills and abilities that these PG's have, albeit undeveloped and untapped? I think he does. He definitely has the court vision like most of these PG's have, maybe even better than some of them. Telfair's problem is he tries to make a lot of spectacular passes when all he really needs to do is make a simpler pass. He has to learn when to take chances and when not to. But as for having the eyes and vision of a good PG to see plays developing and delivering crisp passes in difficult angles, Telfair has them.
Telfair definitely has the ball handling like the good PG's. He's adept at going left or right, making quick, strong and accurate passes with his left and right, and dribbling through traffic and double teams.
He's definitely quick enough to shift gears and get past defenders. This causes defenses to adjust, which leaves openings for his teammates.
Good PG's control the ball, the tempo, and their teammates look for them to set up the offense and get them shots to take. Telfair has the making to do all of these, its just that his teammates need time to adjust to him and have the trust and confidence in him to run the team. Pierce seemed to work well when Chucky Atkins came over for half the '04 season, and he was probably the closest thing to a true PG Pierce has played with since being in the NBA. Playing along with Telfair is not all that different. Telfair is going to look to create shots and scoring opportunities for himself and teammates. If Pierce and the rest of the guys want shots, they'll need to work with Telfair and get acquainted to moving without the ball.
What Telfair lacks physically are long arms and optimal height. But Nash, Paul and Knight have done alright despite not having gorilla arms and SG's stature, so he'll have to find a way to adjust.
Part of the argument for Telfair's inability to make an impact so far in his 2 seasons as a pro is his playing for a system that was not built for him. Nate McMillan, Portland's coach as well as a Telfair supporter, notes that Bassy's style just didn't fit in with the way Portland was running the offense. While Portland opted to go with a halfcourt offense to cater to their star PF Zach Randolph, Telfair is like a Ferrari that is built for speed and running. It wasn't a match made in heaven.
Switching over to Boston, where Doc and Ainge are preaching speed and athleticism in an uptempo offense, Telfair's game may finally find a good match.
It just may be the place where he finally makes his impact.
Steve Nash
Chris Paul
Chauncy Billups
Baron Davis
Gilbert Arenas
Tony Parker
Jason Kidd
Andre Miller
Mike Bibby
Kirk Hinrich
Brevin Knight
Luke Ridnour
Comparing Telfair to any of these guys may be out of the question at this point because they've proven to be good PG's for more than a couple of seasons. But this just may be a case of Telfair being undeveloped compared to where these guys are right now. Aside from Jason Kidd and Chris Paul, who came out strong from their rookie season (averaging better than 7 apg), most of these top PG's started off slowly like Telfair.
Does Telfair have the skills and abilities that these PG's have, albeit undeveloped and untapped? I think he does. He definitely has the court vision like most of these PG's have, maybe even better than some of them. Telfair's problem is he tries to make a lot of spectacular passes when all he really needs to do is make a simpler pass. He has to learn when to take chances and when not to. But as for having the eyes and vision of a good PG to see plays developing and delivering crisp passes in difficult angles, Telfair has them.
Telfair definitely has the ball handling like the good PG's. He's adept at going left or right, making quick, strong and accurate passes with his left and right, and dribbling through traffic and double teams.
He's definitely quick enough to shift gears and get past defenders. This causes defenses to adjust, which leaves openings for his teammates.
Good PG's control the ball, the tempo, and their teammates look for them to set up the offense and get them shots to take. Telfair has the making to do all of these, its just that his teammates need time to adjust to him and have the trust and confidence in him to run the team. Pierce seemed to work well when Chucky Atkins came over for half the '04 season, and he was probably the closest thing to a true PG Pierce has played with since being in the NBA. Playing along with Telfair is not all that different. Telfair is going to look to create shots and scoring opportunities for himself and teammates. If Pierce and the rest of the guys want shots, they'll need to work with Telfair and get acquainted to moving without the ball.
What Telfair lacks physically are long arms and optimal height. But Nash, Paul and Knight have done alright despite not having gorilla arms and SG's stature, so he'll have to find a way to adjust.
Part of the argument for Telfair's inability to make an impact so far in his 2 seasons as a pro is his playing for a system that was not built for him. Nate McMillan, Portland's coach as well as a Telfair supporter, notes that Bassy's style just didn't fit in with the way Portland was running the offense. While Portland opted to go with a halfcourt offense to cater to their star PF Zach Randolph, Telfair is like a Ferrari that is built for speed and running. It wasn't a match made in heaven.
Switching over to Boston, where Doc and Ainge are preaching speed and athleticism in an uptempo offense, Telfair's game may finally find a good match.
It just may be the place where he finally makes his impact.